This Friday(13th), Cuba began releasing the first prisoners benefiting from the measure announced by the government on Thursday (12).
The NGO indicated in X that it was able to “verify the release” of two people who participated in the anti-government demonstrations on July 11, 2021. They had been sentenced to 13 and 14 years in prison.
The first releases occur after conversations with the Vatican. On Thursday (12), after the dialogue, the island announced that it would release 51 prisoners as a gesture of “good will”.
CONTEXT:
Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel confirmed, this Friday (13), the recent negotiations between Havana and Washington with the aim of resolving long-standing differences between the two countries.
This comes at a time when the communist-ruled Caribbean island faces an increasingly serious economic crisis.
US President Donald Trump renewed his threat of a “friendly takeover” of Cuba earlier this week.
Donald Trump republished an article from ‘US Today’ talking about the conversations.
Díaz-Canel made the announcement in a video broadcast on national television and also spoke at a later press conference, where he addressed Cuba’s energy needs amid the US-imposed oil blockade, stating that no fuel has entered Cuba in the last three months. He said negotiations with the US are still at an early stage.
“These conversations aim to seek solutions through dialogue for the bilateral differences that exist between our two nations,” said Díaz-Canel.
